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A half pound of butter. Flickr

Guess how many of these were sold around the world last year?

It’s a lot of milking.

350 MILLION PACKETS of Kerrygold butter were sold around the world last year, contributing to over €2 billion in turnover for the Irish Dairy Board.

The Irish food giant is the number one butter in Germany and the number one imported butter in the United States according to IDB’s full year report.

In total, the Irish dairy co-operative reported sales of €2.1 billion last year and a pre-tax profit of 22.8 million. Both figures represent an increase on the previous year, 5 per cent and 87 per cent respectively.

The IDB says that the created new sales and marketing teams in Russia, China, Saudi Arabia and South Africa last year and are targeting increases in those emerging markets as well as in the EU as restrictions ease over the coming years.

“The abolition of milk quotas in 2015 will present the Irish dairy industry with its first opportunity for meaningful expansion in the past 30 years,” says CEO Kevin Lane. “Our strategy is to ensure that IDB members and dairy farmers are optimally positioned to participate in this expansion opportunity through enhanced routes to market and sustainable, market led products.”

Jobs

The IDB have also announced that they are to open a new €30 million facility in Mitchelstown, Co. Cork, leading to the creation of 50 new jobs. The new factory is to be built in conjunction with Kerrygold and will also be used as an innovation centre for the multinational.

The co-op has also pointed towards a number of other changes from last year they feel have strengthened their global position. These include a partnership with First Milk in the UK and the acquisition of a Saudi Arabian company as part of plans to build a cheese manufacturing facility there.

Read: Coveney to dairy farmers: You’re (still) producing too much milk >

Read: Value of Irish food and drink exports nearly €10 billion in 2013 >

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45 Comments
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    Mute Zozzy Zozimus
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    Jun 28th 2015, 9:16 PM

    “Dr Omar said it’s medical professionals role now to educate patients that multiple embryo transfers is not always necessary, as while success with IVF treatment in the past was low, studies show there can be a 70% success rate with a single embryo transfer.”

    That 70% success rate is a remarkable claim. I’m interested to know in which specific circumstances that could possibly be the case. People considering IVF should be advised that the probability of success (as in a live birth) from a single IVF cycle is _FAR_ lower than 70%. Even assuming you’ve reached the point of an embryo transfer, 70% still sounds unbelievably high.

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    Mute Grigori Rasputin
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    Jun 28th 2015, 9:55 PM

    They explain the 70% statistic in the home page of their website (http://www.beaconcarefertility.ie)

    70% clinical pregnancy rate for patients under 35. Over 35, the rate drops (which I would guess is where most of their patients come from). I also assume it’s an average over all types of assisted reproduction provided by the clinic, and doesn’t necessarily apply to any given procedure type.

    Clinical pregnancy means a positive pregnancy test, not a live birth. In fairness, it would be unfair to rate them in live births since the point of IVF et al is to counter difficulties with conception, not pregnancy. Pregnancy and birth is a whole different ball game that is unrelated to how one conceived.

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    Mute Nicola Long
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    Jun 28th 2015, 9:46 PM

    That last paragraph is bullshit! Expectant twin mothers admitted to hospital weeks before birth and twins spending weeks in NICU? It’s said like it’s always the case! My twin boys are 2 this week, I was admitted the night before the planned c section at over 38 weeks and they never needed NICU. Most twin births that I know of are as uncomplicated or even less complicated as mine thankfully.

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    Mute Deborah Behan
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    Jun 29th 2015, 12:13 PM

    Congrats Nicola.

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    Mute Sandra Turner
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    Jun 28th 2015, 11:33 PM

    People are having babies later in life. The chances of having twins increase with age as women start to release more than one egg per cycle to increase chances of reproducing.

    125
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    Mute E. O'Leary
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    Jun 28th 2015, 9:10 PM

    THE JOURNAL IS DELIBERATELY IGNORING THIS STORY! “Asylum” applications have doubled on last year in just six months. Eight Ethiopians claimed asylum upon arrival in Ireland on board Ethiopian Airlines INAUGURAL flight!!

    http://m.independent.ie/irish-news/migrant-crisis-growing-here-as-asylum-seekers-double-in-2015-31335109.html

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    Mute Supernova
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    Jun 28th 2015, 9:19 PM

    Dennis o brien

    56
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    Mute John Byrne
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    Jun 28th 2015, 9:49 PM

    It doesn’t suit their Left wing open borders agenda E. O’Leary, plus their best bud Chuck Feeney spends lots of money on pro asylum/immigrant quangos to make sure the clickbait media toe the multicult line.
    The horse has well and truly bolted, the only thing that will save us is a government with a backbone and mass deportations

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    Mute Grigori Rasputin
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    Jun 28th 2015, 10:25 PM

    If the Journal is so left wing, I don’t get why so many right wingers read it so religiously. It seems like a form of masochism.

    It’s like if city folk were bombarding the comments section of The Farmers Journal complaining about their rural agenda and the lack of articles on inner city issues.

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    Mute Rashers Tierney
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    Jun 28th 2015, 10:30 PM

    The Journal – left wing!!??!! HAHA HAHA HAAAAAAA, dat’s a good one

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    Mute Gill B
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    Jun 29th 2015, 1:42 PM

    E.O’Leary
    At least your consistent with your hate towards Women, LGBT community & Refugee/Asylum.
    Do you attend Mass every Sunday, fill that Trocaire Box to the top?

    3
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    Mute Rashers Tierney
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    Jun 28th 2015, 9:51 PM

    I would guess that it’s due to an increase in fertility treatments, as elsewhere. Has that cleared up the mystery. Journal!

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    Mute Missyb211
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    Jun 28th 2015, 10:35 PM

    If you actually read the story you would know that they say that but also point out that natural twin births are on the rise also. Anyway, the headline should not be a question about “WHY?” because that’s not what the story is about. The story is mainly about that doctor’s belief that women do not need to have multiple embyros implanted because the procedure has advanced so much that the survival of just one embryo is very probable.

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    Mute Rashers Tierney
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    Jun 29th 2015, 2:01 AM

    @missyb211. I answered the question posed in the headline. If you have a problem, take it up with the Journal, not with me. PS I read the article

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    Mute Deborah Behan
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    Jun 29th 2015, 12:15 PM

    IVF is extremely expensive. I have some friends who unfortunately went through their third cycle unsuccessfully and now have to stop and save again. They are both 32.

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    Mute Caitlin Caomhanach
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    Jun 29th 2015, 1:43 AM

    I’m a Twin and from a family of 12 kids my mom had all singles up to us…my mother was 36 years old when she had her twins …another 2 sets of twins up to the age of 40.
    Exhausting – believe it’s the age reason on multiple births.

    53
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    Mute Deborah Behan
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    Jun 29th 2015, 12:13 PM

    Jesus your poor mother!

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    Mute Sternn
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    Jun 28th 2015, 10:59 PM

    Irish Super Sperm!

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    Mute Gina Shellard
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    Jun 29th 2015, 10:13 AM

    What an insensitive thing to say. I know many twin mothers who had very uncomplicated and straight forward pregnancies and births, me included. Some natural, some assisted conceptions. All this article does is insult twin and multiple mums as well as put added pressure on those considering IVF. There is one reason this doctor is trying to discourage more than one egg being implanted during IVF. Most families nowadays usually stop at 2/3 children. If there is a high chance of twins or then a couple are less likely to get help a second time. It means less money coming in to fertility surgeries. When I was in hospital after having my babies, every other mother in my ward were c-sections, and several ended up in the SBCU, I was the only twin mum there.

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    Mute mary carey
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    Jun 28th 2015, 9:24 PM

    The little guy/gal in the top pic, on the left!! Is his ear like that from being squished up against his brother/sister for 9mths???

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    Mute Sheila Leahy
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    Jun 28th 2015, 10:47 PM

    Hi Mary Carey ,one of my children were born with her ear like that ,she was low birth weight and when she put on weight it filled out and is normal now.

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    Mute jenni
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    Jun 28th 2015, 11:01 PM

    Well now Mary, you got your answer from the mouth of a parent.
    Next time you post you might think

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    Mute mary carey
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    Jun 29th 2015, 12:03 AM

    Thank you above parent! It wasn’t a pi$$-taking remark – it was a genuine curiosity! Not a mockery!

    So Jenni take ur righteousness and shove it!!

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    Mute Pam El A
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    Jun 29th 2015, 9:32 AM

    My baby was 9lb full term natural birth and had an ear like that for a few days. It’s just from how they lie in the womb.

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    Mute D'unredactable
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    Jun 28th 2015, 9:24 PM

    IVF/IMF!

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    Mute Micheal S. O' Ceilleachair
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    Jun 29th 2015, 8:47 AM

    Contrast the lengths people will go to to conceive a child with the lengths people may go to abort a conceived child. The contrast between a wanted pregnancy and an unwanted pregnancy.

    3
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